Published March 23, 2015 at 12:21 PM Updated March 30, 2015 at 10:25 AM

A 1,000-year-old Buddha statute containing the body of a mummified monk inside was put on display in the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest. It was part of the museum’s “Mummy World” exhibition that opened in October 2014 and originally scheduled to be on display though May 2015. However, the relic has since been removed, as claims that the ‘Living Buddha’ was stolen from an east China village began to come to the surface.

Photos: China's 'Living Buddha' on display at 'Mummy World' exhibit

A 1,000-year-old Buddha statute containing the body of a mummified monk inside was put on display in the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest. It was part of the museum's “Mummy World” exhibition that opened in October 2014 and originally scheduled to be on display though May 2015. However, the relic has since been removed, as claims that the 'Living Buddha' was stolen from an east China village began to come to the surface.

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A Chinese Buddha statue with the mummified body of a Buddhist monk inside is on display at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary on March 3, 2015. According to the Chinese characters written on the pilow of the statue, the body inside the statue belonged to Chinese Buddhist monk Zhang Liuquan who lived around A.D. 1100. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the Chinese character "Fo", or "Buddha", on the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the pillow of the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the pillow of the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows a part of the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

File photo taken on March 3, 2015 shows the back of the Chinese Buddha statue at the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest, Hungary. A Buddha statue that conceals the mummified remains of an ancient monk was withdrawn from the Hungarian Natural History Museum by its Dutch owner in Budapest on Friday. Villagers living in Yangchun, a village in China's southeastern province of Fujian, claimed that this statue was the one stolen from their village's temple in 1995, Chinese media reported recently. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)